Quick Reactions To Victory Over Southampton...

January 29, 2011

1. Sir Alex Ferguson obviously has a lot of faith in Ander Lindegaard to let him make his début behind a defence with the average age of 23 (that’s including 29-year-old John O’Shea!). Or maybe he really believes in Chris Smalling and Jonny Evans’ ability. By and large, we got away with. Smalling got higher than his opponent time and again to head clear and Fabio made some great runs down the left flank to get the ball out of danger. But the inexperience of the centre backs was exposed when Southampton went 1-0 up, with Smalling bothering more about marking the player in the box than keeping close enough to Evans. Once Evans was beaten (far too easily), Chaplow was able to take advantage of the space Smalling had left and lashed it past Lindegaard. There was nothing the keeper could have done with it. You have to think when Rio or Vida partner one of these younger centre backs they are bossing the back four, telling them where to go and what to do. We missed that presence today but Smalling/Evans will learn this with time.

2. Whilst still regarded as a scouse bastard by many, we have to acknowledge that Michael Owen was probably our man of the match today. Whilst it was the substitutions that helped us turn the game around, Owen was one of the few players who managed to have a positive influence even in the first half. With just over an hour played, he picked up the ball and played a lovely Scholes-esque pass to Gabriel Obertan on the right. The young Frenchman, who we’ll come to later, beat his man and put in a ball for Owen, who had continued his run in to the box, to head past the keeper for the equaliser. For the winning goal, it was Owen who won the ball just outside our box and passed to Giggs to assist Chicharito. Is he now ahead of Rooney in pecking order too? Ok, I jest, but strikers need to have good all round play as well as putting the ball in the back of the net. £180k a week Rooney generally only manages one of the two, sometimes neither. Owen surprisingly suited the deeper striker role though. Will Fergie he entrust him with it in the league though? Not with three players ahead of him.

3. Broken record time. Our midfield wasn’t good enough. Anderson and Gibson were very disappointing, whilst Scholes again struggled to have his usual controlling influence on the game. He had more of an impact when we switched to 442 and got rid of the dead weight in midfield though. Ryan Giggs and Nani helped change the game, as did switching Obertan on to the right flank. It seemed like an odd decision, given Obertan usually plays on the left and Nani prefers the right. It looks as though Obertan plays on the left for us because he usually has French speaking mentor, Patrice Evra, playing behind him. He was so much more effective on the right and got the assist from the equalising goal. Giggs got to grips in the centre of the park, with the help of Scholesy, and assisted our winning goal. Nani beat his man time and again, got in the box, and won us plenty of free kicks from dangerous positions, with his tricky feet too much for Southampton.

4. We had enough talent on the pitch to beat a League 1 team today, even though they obviously had a point to improve a very talented player in Chamberlain. But you have to wonder how effective we’re ever going to be when shoving eleven players who don’t usually play together in a side to face a team that plays together week in week out. Then when you put them in some silly formation, you’re on the road to ruin. Does Fergie play FM11 by any chance? Whilst Giggs and Nani made a difference, it’s also no coincidence we suddenly started to look like a team that was going to win when we switched to 442.

5. Chicharito is the most natural goal scorer we’ve had since Ruud. It’s unbelievable. Doesn’t matter where the ball comes to him, which position he’s in, which part of his body the ball touches, you always fancy him to score. Fans had been suggesting he was only use to us from the subs bench, as fresh pacey legs able to exploit a tiring defence, but he was on the part for 75 minutes today before scoring the winner. Well done Hernandez.

Nani came on yesterday and put his stamp on the game. No width with the diamond in the first half. With Valencia hurt and Park away on International duty and Giggs and Nani on the bench wow looked like a team with no imagination or guile to unlock the def-fence.
The papers today speak of Henderson and Adams. And it is months to the next window. Then a possible turnover of 10 first team players.

Costas - na I disagree. Fergie picks strange teams away from home that lacks balance especially width. When united lack width united really do struggle has there is no dribbling ability to stretch sides, has there is no drive going through the middle has our central midfield does struggle. Look at our 2 goals it came from our wide boys, either wide or through the middle

When Giggs came on he played central and not wide, thou united played more wide with Nani and Obertan. On a central midfield note, I would like SAF to give Matty James a run in games like this in stead of Gibson. Wasnt he called back home?

@FITB ... me too. Possibly Scholes too, who is said to be undecided. But zibbie's comment left me befuddled. That would be quite a clean-out! It would be the sort of stunt that shitty or the virus would pull.

...anderson and gibson indeed were not at their best on the night and especially with the positions they were playing they were awful....Gibson doesnt have the heart or desire to attack or defend if need be and for me me he was the flop of the match...Anderson is far match better in the central midfield area as he is more attck minded and holds the ball briliantly...Owen was incredible as he played inbetween the mid.and the attack nd Chicharito!!! wel Done Wel Done!!! defence was brilliant Evans doesnt seem to have a future in CB postion nd Good ridance if He Leave s in the Summer!!!! Fabio is the Future as well as Rafael, Oshea just lucks the brilliance and ambition that is seen in fabio nd also to understand the links and gameplay but instead gave out alot of incomplete passes...Brown,.i honestly have no words to say bout him,,,Scholes is a genious Gigggs is the Miracle Worker and Nani is His SideKick....Lindegaard wasnt so bad for his debut Game...but Generally poor 1st Half performance nd if southampton Gave us a Run for our Money,most definately Crawley Town wil have a bit at Us....and possibly a shocker of the season...

Sam. Evans doesn't have a future? That's nonsense mate. Jonny is a red and a bloody good defender and still learning the game. He has had the ladyboy. Drogba. Irbrahimovic and many others in his pocket. He was the mainstay in ourclean sheet run two seasons ago. He has just been having trouble with form but last two games has looked better. The lad will go on to be a great centre half.